


To Trick A Trickster

by Autumn_Elizabeth



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Family, FrostIron - Freeform, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mystery, Slash, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-01-01
Updated: 2016-02-08
Packaged: 2017-11-15 21:22:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/531857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Autumn_Elizabeth/pseuds/Autumn_Elizabeth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prequel to Kabhi Kushi's The Start of A Lifetime In Love. FrostIron eventually. What exactly will it take to unite the Avengers and their greatest foe? Lost ties, secrets, threats and... budding romance? Sentiment? Though really, Loki couldn't think of anyone else he'd rather be stuck with. Tony, however, isn't quite so sure. Summary sucks.. But R&R if you want. SLASH</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

"Sir, I believe we have a lock. The target has finally stopped moving," Agent Maria Collins spoke to Director Fury as he stepped onto the bridge of the airship that served as S.H.I.E.L.D's headquarters.

"Good work. Get me Agents Barton and Romanoff," the tall man replied as Agent Collins hurried to obey his orders.

 _Finally found, hm? I wonder if she's finally in our grasp,_ Fury wondered as he stared out the window. "Take us down to sea level."

"Yes, sir," one of the agents replied as they began to descend.

"Director," Agent Natasha Romanoff walked up behind the director, Clint Barton close behind, "You wanted to see us. Do you have a mission?"

Nick Fury turned around and eyed the Black Widow and Hawkeye, "Yes. We are landing now. This," he slid an eight by ten photograph across the table they all stood around, "is your target. You are to disable her, and bring her back alive. If she resists, you have orders to put her down."

"Are we sure it's actually her?" Barton asked, speaking for the first time since the briefing started.

"Yes, beyond a shadow of a doubt."

It was Natasha that spoke up this time, "But she's been on our search list for the past ten years without a trace of evidence to her name. She hardly looks to be older than twenty five. How did she manage to make the list at fifteen?"

Fury sighed, he'd been hoping to avoid this conversation. But now that the topic had been brought up, he had no choice but to offer an explanation of some sort, "You know how prolific this organization is. They control the majority of the world's organized crime, without revealing themselves as being existent. Anyone who can climb to the top, especially in that short of a time frame, will be of interest to us."

The red-head narrowed her eyes, Clint tensed slightly. They could tell that they weren't being privy to the whole truth, but would let it slide. At least until they talked to Stark about breaking through SHIELD's computer defenses to get the full dossier on this girl. "You have your orders," the Director began again, "Get your gear ready."

"Yes, sir," Romanoff turned on her heel and followed her friend and partner off of the bridge.

* * *

Tony Stark sat in his workshop with a tablet in one hand and a glass of scotch in the other as he and Bruce Banner went over the specs for a new enhancement for the prototype Mach VIII. "Sir," JARVIS broke through their discussion, "Agent Natasha Romanoff and Agent Clint Barton are requesting to see you."

The genius sighed and didn't even look up from his work, "Did they say what they want? Ah, never mind. Might as well let the lovebirds in."

"Yes, sir."

Bruce snickered slightly before speaking, "Make sure they don't hear you saying that. Barton may just put an arrow through you."

Stark waved a hand dismissively and stood up. "It would be worth it. After you, Doctor Banner," he grinned as he opened the door.

They made their way toward the sitting room where Natasha and Clint had already made themselves comfortable.

"Hey kids. What news from afar?" Tony greeted them with a winning smile, while Bruce gave a small nod and a fleeting smile in greeting.

Natasha rolled her eyes and Clint, quick as a flash, quipped, "Oh there's plenty, but you wouldn't remember it two minutes from now, gramps."

The genius just smirked before sitting down. "Alright. What is it you two wanted? Last I heard you were supposed to be on a mission for Fury."

"We are... Or we are going to be, but Fury's hiding something."

"And that's news? He's always hiding something," Banner snorted and shook his head.

Barton quickly interjected before Stark could add anything, "It has to do with our target. We need to know what Fury is hiding from us about her. Could you look? Please?"

"Oh, well..." Tony frowned, appearing to be in thought for a moment, "If you're going to ask nicely," he drawled with a winning grin, "I'll look. I guess I'll just forward you the information?"

"Thank you, Tony," Natasha muttered as the two agents prepared to take their leave.

The man nodded, already muttering commands to JARVIS.

* * *

Thor looked up at the sky. It was a sunny day, and he'd been wandering around Manhattan, learning of his surroundings now that the threat of destruction was not imminent. He greatly enjoyed Midgardian weather, it was a nice change from the auroras of Asgard. The tingling in the palm of his hand that held a Midgardian communication device had not abated for the past few minutes. Looking down, he saw Tony Stark's face glowing on the screen. Blinking for a few moments, he pressed the green button that said 'accept' and put the phone to his ear. "Stark? What is it you need?"

The voice on the other end of the line came through crisply. "There's some information you guys are going to want to see. See if you can find Cap on your way here."

Before the demi-god could reply, the billionaire had hung up.


	2. Chapter 2

They all congregated in Tony's living room - or one of them. Holographic screens surrounded them, displaying what appeared to be surveillance videos, old photographs and the other information contained in the classified dossier that Jarvis had acquired an hour prior. Another screen displayed Natasha and Clint's faces, the video being relayed from an untraceable Stark Industries phone.

"What does this mean?" Steve was the first to speak as the assembled Avengers attempted to process the information before their eyes.

"Well, either she knows a great anti-ageing program," Stark began, "Or-"

"Or," Bruce spoke up, "she's found a source of immortality."

Clint didn't look amused, "And Fury wants us to bring her back?"

"It says here she was born somewhere in Scandinavia, known as Morrigan Heldatter - no way to know if that's her birth name or an alias - wow. This is an incomplete dossier, especially coming from S.H.I.E.L.D... Says she was born in 1943..." Steve scanned the document, "That makes her over seventy years old."

Thor's rumbling voice was heard for the first time since Tony'd opened up the file, "Is that not the time when Midgardians warred amongst themselves? For the second time?"

Stark's eyes lit up and Rogers tensed, "Do you think...?"

"Hydra?" Natasha interjected, "But that wouldn't make sense. If they had succeeded in creating a serum or something to make someone immortal... wouldn't Schmidt have used it on himself?"

Captain America shrugged, "It's really hard to say. But either way, that base was destroyed. A project of that magnitude definitely would have been developed and stored there, however everything there was incinerated and crushed by the explosion. "

"Hate to contradict you, Spandex, but we're dealing with someone supposedly you know... immortal?"

The Captain was silent, and all eyes turned back towards the two agents. "How are you planing on capturing one of the ;most highly trained mercenaries in the world?" Banner inquired, glasses twirling between his fingers.

"A lot of tranq's?" Clint said slightly jokingly before his partner cut in.

"Given this new intel, we'll have to go all out to take her down. Probably. You wouldn't happen -"

Suddenly, the video cut out and the line went dead.

"JARVIS, what the hell just happened?" Tony barked, all the while manipulating the interfaces around him to suit his needs.

"It appears sir, that their signal is being blocked. I have tried to reconnect but my attempts have failed," the posh accented voice of the AI reported.

"Then we must hope that our friends have the means to complete their mission," Thor boomed.

Everyone in the room nodded in agreement beefore dispersing throughout the mansion. Thor and Rogers went to the sparring grund which Tony had had built - below the ten levels of R&D and the apartements they all inhabited - to be sound, Mjölnir, and shield-proof. The two geniuses went to work in the labs; Tony had an idea for something that would prevent the signals being blocked and Bruce wanted to research some more on the girl's supposed immortality. Without even having said a word, the team known as the Avengers had jumped into action, preparing in every way possible.

* * *

"Fuck! What could have blocked this signal like that?" Clint stared at the phone with a scowl on his face.

"We can worry about that later, Clint. We have company."

Hawkeye looked out the window of the abandoned warehouse that served as their temporary hide out. He spotted a knot of people approaching, only one of them seeming to be female - they all wore hooded jackets or sweaters, making it hard to distinguish their faces or genders. "Is that her in the center?"he inquired.

His partner peered down at the person the entourage or armed men surrounded, "Seems like it. You think you can take her down? I'll take care of the guards."

Barnot nodded as Romanoff began the descent to the bottom floor. He drew and arrow from his quiver and nocked it to the bowstring. The projectile, aimed for her back, suddenly sprouted from the chest of a black clad man who slumped down, dead. Grey green eyes stared up at the pair, expression blank. A few muttered words and hand signals later, the small force had dispersed, leaving the young woman vulnerable. The archer soon saw Natasha's fiery red hair in the alley below and rappelled down to meet her as she began speaking.

"Morrigan Heldatter," the spy began, "We're going to have to ask you to come with us. It would be in your best interest if you cooperated."

The girl smirked, the expression sending a small shiver down Clint's spine. It was eerily familiar. "I do apologize, Agent Romanoff," she spoke in a lilting accent not unlike that of Thor or Loki, the smirk never leaving her lips, "but I have no intention of co-operating. That would be terribly...dull."

"Not dull," Clint cut in, nocking another arrow to the string, "but rather quite messy. For you."

Shaking her head, the raven haired girl turned on her heel and began walking away, "No, Agent Barton. It has already become quite messy. For you. I hope you both enjoy your day. It is a pleasure meeting you."

Natasha noticed for the first time, as the woman left, ducking and weaving this way and that until she was about five meters from them, that all of the guards had disappeared. She hadn't even met any on her way out, they'd simply vanished. Then the sun came out from behind the clouds and a sparkle of light caught the two agent's eyes. "What -" Clink began as they looked at the spidery thin threads that ran between the buildings.

His fingers brushed one of the threads, just ever so slightly. Next thing they knew, the world was a mass of fire, smoke and debris. A series of explosions left their ears ringing as the building crashed down around them. The pair was thrown in opposite directions to lay flat on their faces, gasping for breath.

"Clint?" the Black Widow called out weakly after the booming and crashing had subsided a couple minutes later.

She tried to gather her legs underneath her, still disoriented and discombobulated from the blast. When only the silence called back to her, she tried again, pushing the panic from her mind. "Clint?"

A few seconds later, she was about to call out again before the faint reply reached her ears, "'M here..." the man muttered loudly as he tried to pick himself up, getting reoriented.

Blood dripped from a cut on his head and a gash in his leg. "So, I think... it's time we talked to Fury. Well, after we tell the others what happened here," the brunette panted as he walked up to his friend.

"Definitely. Let's get out of here, there should be a jet waiting for us on the tarmac. We'll patch ourselves up," she finally began to take stock of her injuries - mostly scrapes and burns - as she spoke, "And we'll get in contact with Stark."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~A WILD UPDATE HAS APPEARED~ Yeah, so that definitely took long enough didn't it?   
> Anywhoooo at least it's hear, yeah? Please review, I'd love to know what you think.

"Sir, there's a call incoming from Agents Barton and Romanoff."

Tony turned at the sound of the AI's voice, a surprised look on his face, "Is it secure?"

JARVIS replied without hesitation, "Yes sir, it's coming from the phone you gave them. Shall I convene the others?"

The billionaire looked around, sighing softly and nodded, “Sure. Hold the call until they get here.”

It didn’t take long for the rest of the Avengers to return to the living room, and the two remaining members of the team showed up on the holographic screen at the far end of the room.

“What happened to you guys? You look like shit,” Tony remarked with a trademark smirk.

Nat rolled her eyes, and Clint replied, “Ran into our target. Turns out it was a trap. She blew the place to bits.”

“I’m more concerned about the guards she had with her,” Black Widow spoke up finally.

Seeing their looks of confusion she continued, “I mean, she used one as a human shield against one of Clint’s arrows, but they just disappeared when she signalled them to disperse. I saw no sign of them when I came out of the building, and they didn’t trigger the trap that nearly killed us.”

Thor sighed, turning to pace in frustration. Bruce glanced at him and raised an eyebrow, “Thor?”

Instead of replying to the doctor, the demigod turned to the screen, “These guards, did you see their faces?”

Both agents shook their heads, “They all looked the same,” muttered Clint, “Black pants and hooded sweaters. It was impossible to distinguish one from the other.”

“Did you say her surname was Heldatter?”

“Well, that’s what she calls herself. Impossible to say if that’s what it really is,” Tony piped up, looking curiously at the Asgardian, “What’s on your mind, big guy?”

Sitting down, Thor explained, “In Asgard, we do not take the surnames of our father. Rather we take their given name, and add either ‘son’ or ‘daughter’ – ‘datter’ – as a suffix. Such as my own – Odinson. Or Loki’s – Laufeyson,” he paused, unsure whether to continue or not, “If my suspicions are correct, this girl could truly be a Heldatter – daughter of Hel.”

Cap looked at Thor, “I assume we’re not talking Hell, like Satan and eternal suffering for those who go against God?”

The blonde looked slightly confused, “No, not exactly. Hel is the goddess of Helheim, another of the Nine Realms.”

“So she’s not Asgardian then?” Steve looked even more confounded.

“It’s complicated,” Thor muttered, looking away from the group.

“Is it really?” Bruce finally spoke again, “Correct me if I’m mistaken, but in Norse mythology isn’t Hel the daughter of Loki?”

* * *

Morrigan smiled to herself, sitting back against her headboard and twirling a small silver dagger between her fingers. Absentmindedly she got up and walked to the window, looking out over Oslo, Norway from her panoramic windows, the knife still between her slender fingers. Her breath fogged up the glass, and she closed her eyes, murmuring words of an ancient language underneath her breath. The air in front of her shivered and a woman’s face appeared. Her thin face was framed by dirty blonde hair, and grey eyes shimmered from under thin brows and dark lashes.

“Mother,” Morrigan smiled.

“Daughter, you look different. Why are you wearing such a glamour?” Hel inquired softly, her voice rasping slightly.

A smirk played on her lips as she replied, “I needed SHIELD to find me, in Manhattan. They know this as the face of Morrigan Heldatter. And I would much rather keep it that way. My true face may my own for a little while longer, as with my birth name.”

Nodding, her mother smiled at her, “I am glad you chose to take my name as your own, my dear.”

“Of course, Mother. Though it is not my name by birth, it is mine by birthright, and my true name. A mortal could not change that.”

“I know, Morrigan. Now, you should go before someone notices the energy of our communication. And please, do what I could not for my father,” with a slight wave, which Morrigan returned, the call ended.

Turning from the window with a soft sigh, the young woman headed to her bathroom. Shedding her clothes and turning on the shower, she waited for steam to cloud the glass before stepping underneath the warm stream of water. As the water ran over her body, her appearance began to change, as if it were being washed away. Her hair grew longer and darker, her skin paled and her eyes shifted colour – one grey and one green. She seemed to grow more slender, more delicate the longer she stood under the spray.

She finally stepped out of the shower and had just finished getting dressed when there was a knock at the door. Giving her hair one last ruffle with the towel, she went to answer it.

“If you could just sign here,” a young man spoke with a smile as Morrigan took the package that was handed to her.

“Of course, thank you Cristoffer. As always,” she handed the digital clipboard back to him.

Cristoffer chuckled softly, “And you are welcome, Vivian. As always.”

 

 

 


	4. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus. It's been a while hasn't it? As usual, life got in the way and I got lazy. Writer's block is gone though, so it's time to get on with the show! Hope you enjoy, and that I'm not too rusty.
> 
> Disclaimer: As usual, I have about -5.00$ in the bank so if you sue me you're only gonna get my debt. Don't own anything except my OC's and my original plot.

_"It's complicated," Thor muttered, looking away from the group._

_"Is it really?" Bruce finally spoke again, "Correct me if I'm mistaken, but in Norse mythology isn't Hel the daughter of Loki?"_

* * *

 

"Great, another trickster then," Clint sighed, "Though that does explain a lot doesn't it? Do you think S.H.I.E.L.D knows of her heritage?"

Bruce was the next to speak, pinching the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger, "It's S.H.I.E.L.D. If they didn't know for sure, they probably suspected it. Thor," he paused and looked at the Asgardian, "What is Hel like? I presume you've met her."

Thor continued to stare out the window, "The last time I saw Hel was when she was still very young, when my father was exiling her to Niflheim - the realm of the dead. She is bound to that realm, ruling over the souls of the deceased. I remember her being very gifted in magic at a young age, something both Loki and my mother encouraged. Hel was kind hearted, more cunning than mischievous, and quite compassionate. But time and exile could have turned her bitter, I do not know. She was - is - very devoted to her father. It is possible she has been able to find a loophole to enter the other realms on occasion, most likely on your... how do you call it... Hallowe'en. It is when her realm is closest to Midgard."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Steve interjected and Tony looked up.

"Thor, are you saying she could have come to Earth? Had a little fun, gotten knocked up and sent her child off to do her evil bidding?"

Thor looked back at Tony sharply, "Hel is not evil, Anthony. Though she may rule over Niflheim, she has never sought destruction. No, if she has sent her daughter here, there must be some other purpose. But I am surprised she would do so. She has had daughters in the past, but all have been hunted and killed upon leaving Niflheim. After all, the Allfather has been vigilant in attempting to end Loki's line in any way possible. I believe that for this... Morrigan... to not be dead, she must have found a way to avoid the Odin's detection. Her father was most likely Midgardian, and if she were raised on Midgard, then the Allfather would not know of her existence. He has little interest at looking in on your world."

"Well isn't that reassuring," Nat muttered, "Why don't we try to dig up her human identity then? I assume that Morrigan Heldatter is a name she would have taken once she discovered her heritage. If we can find her birth name and identity, that should make her easier to track."

"Sure, we'll just hack S.H.I.E.L.D and see what we can find," Tony smirked, "It'll be fun, seeing what Daddy is hiding away in that infamous shoe box under the bed. Why don't you guys come by here when you get back and we can go over what we've found."

The rest of the Avengers either rolled their eyes or sighed at Tony's bright enthusiasm for breaking S.H.I.E. encryptions. Again.

"And let's try to keep this on the low until we can confirm our suspicions. If we aren't being told everything, it could be Fury isn't being told everything by the Council either," Clint warned.

* * *

A couple hours passed before Clint and Natasha returned to the Avengers tower. Bruce and Tony were in the lab when they arrived, making their way upstairs when JARVIS notified them of the agents return.

"Welcome back, kids," Tony smiled his trademark smile at the two before sitting down, "have a fun trip?"

"Very funny Stark," Clint shot back, "If by fun you mean almost getting blown up and failing our mission in a rather spectacular fashion, then I guess yeah you could say we had 'fun'."

"So what have you guys found out?" Natasha glanced between Bruce and Tony questioningly, "Anything on our friend?"

Tony shook his head and Bruce spoke up, "Tony is still working on hacking some of S.H.I.E.L.D's more protected files, but in what we've seen before, there's no more on Morrigan Heldatter than was in the dossier. I would guess she was very careful to keep her birth identity out of S.H.I.E.L.D's hands."

"We're guessing that Fury, for once, isn't actually all knowing. They seem to have no idea what, or who, they're up against," Tony finished, "But we have no way of finding her on our own without S.H.I.E.L.D's surveillance capabilities. So, ideas anyone?"

"That depends, we still want her alive, don't we?" Steve asked, looking around the group who all nodded, "But look at what it took to take Loki - we destroyed most of Manhattan."

"Loki had an army, as far as we know, Morrigan does not," Thor rumbled, "However, Hel inherited a love of games her father. It is Morrigan shares this trait. If that is the case, we may need to play her game."

Natasha spoke up, light dawning in her eyes, "There's a reason we were able to catch her on surveillance again, isn't there? She started the game the moment she let us find her. But what's the objective?"

Tony sighed, "Well that's going to be the winning question isn't it? How are we supposed to play a game with no clear objective?"

"There could be a way."

All eyes in the room turned to Bruce, who'd been mostly silent since talk of this 'game' had begun.

"We use the one person we know can play this type of game."

"No. No way." Steve objected, jumping to his feet.

"Considering last time, I think that's a risk we can't afford to take. How would we even control him? He'd probably vanish the moment he got here and then we'd have two Tricksters to deal with," Clint clenched his fists.

Thor leaned back against the window frame he stood near, looking pensive, "I think that asking for my brother's help in this situation might be beneficial. He does know Hel best, after all, and therefore will be more able to predict her daughter's moves."

"See, big guy, I understand where you're coming from, but how do we know that they aren't working together?" Tony bit his lip, looking between his team mates. "How do we know that freeing Loki is exactly what Morrigan wants?"

"We don't," Bruce spoke softly, "but Asgard has devices to control him - they've worked before. If we could work off those designs, we could find something that would bind him, I'm sure."

"No need, I know of something that would be of use. After all, Loki's powers have already been sealed by the Allfather. There is a device that binds him to an individual, leaving him control over his powers."

"So basically we're going to put the mass murdering maniac on a magical dog leash? Why am I not comforted?" Tony sighed.

Steve looked incredulously at the assembled team, each of them seeming to come around slowly to the idea, "Wait, guys. We can't seriously be considering this. It's insane."

Natasha nodded, "It's true that it is a risk, but without S.H.I.E.L.D able to be of any use to us, maybe it's worth it. But would Loki agree to it?"

Thor thought for a moment, eventually answering with a nod, "I believe so. He does after all have a personal reason to seek her out. If she is indeed Hel's daughter, she is his granddaughter. I believe he would want to find her. I will go to Asgard immediately to discuss it with both him and my father."

Steve sat down and put his head in his hands, "This is madness. I hope it works."

Unease rippled through the assembled Avengers before they stood and retired to their respective rooms. Only Tony stayed up, a glass of expensive scotch in one hand as he gazed out over the New York skyline, watching the traffic - the lights reminding him of a very specific pair of equally as brilliant emerald eyes.


End file.
